Child Pain Relief. Paracetamol vs. Ibuprofen

Thursday, 25 October 2012

Child Pain Relief.

Paracetamol vs. Ibuprofen.

As
a parent you will agree children get ailments very often, especially during the
winter months. However, it can be confusing to know what you can give your
child and what works best. Under 2 months there isn't much they can have, then
at 2 months they can have paracetamol, and at 3 months can have Ibuprofen; but
only ones designed for paediatrics. Most parents are unsure which works best
and which is longer pain relief as no one likes to see their child in pain.

As
a parent I use both paracetamol and ibuprofen for Jack, depending on what is
causing the pain and how he seems to be coping with the pain. As Jack is only
young I haven’t had much experience with using forms of pain relief, however I
know I will in the future. I’ve recently been using Ibuprofen for Jack as he
has been suffering with his teeth and the Paracetamol hasn’t been hitting his
pain to well. Luckily I researched information on both Paracetamol and
Ibuprofen and also sought advice from my father who is a trained ambulance
technician.

My
main reason for this post is to explain the differences in Ibuprofen and
Paracetamol and share with you an educational video from Nurofen for Children
which is fronted by Dr Hilary Jones explaining common misconceptions.

Some
people believe that paracetamol is most effective at reducing a fever for
children. However this is incorrect, both paracetamol and ibuprofen are equally
effective. Another misconception regarding paracetamol and ibuprofen is that
ibuprofen is harsh for infants. This is again incorrect, Ibuprofen is gentle
enough to use when your child weighs over 5kg (roughly 3 months). Ibuprofen is clinically proven to last for upto 8 hours, which is 2 hours longer than paracetamol.
Another benefit of Ibuprofen is it has anti-inflammatory properties; working to
relieve inflammation caused by teething and earache.

Below
I have embedded the video in which Dr Hilary Jones explains the common
misconceptions for you all to see.

Please
remember if in doubt always seek medical advice.This post was written for Nurofen for Children however all wording is my own.